'Choke' holds court at Raindance festival

Faye Dunaway, Arctic Monkeys among other highlights

LONDON -- Clark Gregg's big-screen directorial debut, "Choke," drew the crowds for the opening night of the Raindance Film Festival on Wednesday evening.

Raindance, with 74 movies unspooling over the next two weeks, has established itself in the past 15 years as a platform for experimental, debuting and digital filmmakers whose movies are all looking for a distribution home.

Only "Choke" and the event's closing-night picture, "Hush," have local distribution in place already.

Friday night will see writer-director David Howard's horror film "Flick" screening to an already sold-out theater, largely on the back of the promise of an appearance by Faye Dunaway.

Dunaway is scheduled to give a Q&A, hosted by The Hollywood Reporter, after the screening.

Other festival highlights include rock band Arctic Monkeys, who are in line to support the first showing of their concert movie, "Arctic Monkeys at the Apollo," directed by Richard Ayoade.